The Eye of Anubis
by wdreamynightmare
Summary: Being the Hand of a Goddess isn't easy, especially when duty pits a girl against the Dark Knight, but the new Catwoman has a mission, and nothing is going to stand in the way of its completion. Not even the Batman. Batman x Catwoman
1. Chapter 1

**The Eye of Anubis**

By Nightmare and Winged Dreamer

**Author's Notes: **This takes place three years after Reassurances (which can be found in our profile), and thus three years after the Luthor mess where Kon went rogue for a bit. Infinite Crisis DID NOT happen. We drew inspiration for this story from all over the DCU – comic, animated, and movie – so if there are any weird references, go ahead and point them out and we'll be happy to explain. And before anyone asks, no, the new Catwoman is NOT an OC.

Ages are as follows – Tim, Kon, Cassie (20), Bart (19), Bruce (38), Dick, Barbara, Wally (26).

**Chapter One**

Dick Grayson, formerly Robin of Gotham, now Nightwing of Blüdhaven, sat crouched on a high rooftop of his city and scanned the maze of buildings before him, watching for inevitable foul play. Few believed that Blüdhaven had a higher crime rate than even Gotham, but Nightwing knew it to be a harsh truth. If he didn't stop at least ten crimes tonight, no matter how small, he'd be surprised.

Seeing nothing that needed his immediate attention, Nightwing leapt from his perch and pressed the outside of his forearm to activate his swing line, its grapple hook latching onto the edge of a nearby roof. The line's tension carried him to the top of a building almost a block and a half away from his original location, and his boots made no noise as he landed in a crouch. Silently traveling from shadow to shadow, he crept to the other side of the roof, where he would have a good view of a street lined with well-to-do homes. Nightwing had to stop at least one attempted robbery here a week.

It looked like tonight would be no different. Being a cop made it easy for Dick to keep track of which homeowners were in town and which were abroad. Tonight, the home of a family he knew to be out of the country had an open window on the second floor. Time to go to work. Nightwing leapt down to the street, landing in the house's shadow. He crept into the alley beside the house and started to climb, his senses always alert for noises from the open window or the street below. At last he heard the sounds of rummaging from within and Nightwing crawled in through the open window, making no sound to alert his presence.

An open closet door across from the window revealed a large safe. The safe was open and the thief had her – it was _definitely_ a her, given that gorgeous ass and those flared hips, which were both encased in tight black leather as a delicious bonus – head buried deep in the safe's bottom compartment. Smirking, Nightwing allowed himself a moment to simply observe before making his presence known with a sharp, hopefully startling, "Hello." With any luck, she'd hit the back of her head on the safe's shelf and knock herself out, saving him the trouble of a conflict.

"Hello," came her deep, purring response. The woman gracefully withdrew from the safe and straightened, turning in a slow pivot to face- "Nightwing." Standing with one hand on her waist, the lady thief cocked her hips and lifted her chin. Dressed entirely in supple black leather, she was a sight to behold. Her lithe body was poised so casually, she seemed to be incredibly nonchalant about the whole situation. There was a smug, almost playful smirk tugging at blue-black tinted lips, and the little light that filtered through the uncurtained window winked off the yellow lenses of her domino-style goggles.

Part of her leather costume was a cowl… with cat ears. If Batman hadn't given him extensive schooling on hiding his emotions, Nightwing's jaw would have been in contact with the floor. Catwoman. And not just a copy-cat thief in a copy-cat suit, no. This young woman had what was either a damn good replica of Selina's Catwoman outfit or _was_ Selina's Catwoman outfit, because it looked _exactly_ like what Selina used to wear. And there was no way she could _be_ Selina, because Selina Kyle had been dead for two years, having met her end on a trip to the remote jungles of the Yucatán Peninsula. Dick had gone to the funeral after Bruce had brought her ashes back from Mexico, and Bruce had seen the body before the cremation, confirming her identity.

Batman was not going to be happy he found out about this.

'Alright, Grayson, now's not the time to stand here staring, even if she is a babe.' Nightwing crossed his arms after giving himself a mental shake to get back on track and stated, "Looks like Kitty escaped from the pound."

Her laugh was rich and her shoulders shook with each honest chuckle. "Your playpens can't hold me," she informed him as she straightened her hips, dropping her hand to her side. In the other she casually clutched the strap of a black leather over-the-shoulder satchel. Slipping that strap over her head, she settled the bag into place and took a moment to buckle down the closure flap, the bag's zipper facing her belly and thus out of reach.

"How about we test that claim?" Nightwing pulled out one of the eskrima sticks from the back of his suit and threw it at her with the aim to knock her out, pulling the other stick out while its mate was in mid-flight.

In one fluid motion, Catwoman dropped out of the way of the lobbed weapon and twisted, aiming not for the window, but for the nearest door. Boots made for aiding in the scaling of brick buildings found solid traction on the carpet of the hallway and she sprinted off like a cheetah, hitting the stairs and taking them at a dead run.

'_Shit_.' Nightwing was on her tail from the instant she turned, following her at a dead run, scooping up his dropped stick on the way. If for nothing else, he at least had to question her about where she'd gotten her suit and just what the hell she was thinking, impersonating Catwoman. Of course, Nightwing had to _catch_ her first, and damn, was she fast. He ran down the stairs after her and pulled out all the stops, using every trick he knew to try and get her in a corner.

But she was wily and flexible and seemed to have no fear of heights or the imminent splat that could follow a miscalculated step. Once they were out in the open, she hit the nearest alley and scaled the fire escape with an execution few amateurs could replicate. Her leaps from one apartment roof to the next were perfectly timed, her stride never faltering as she led him on a wild chase over the rooftops of Blüdhaven's "nicer end of town" and right into the slums. Still, her pace never slowed and she never actually tried to shake him. Evade, yes, but she never attempted to lose him.

Most other pursuers wouldn't have noticed that she was deliberately keeping a pace with which Nightwing could keep up. Most other pursuers wouldn't have been trained by The World's Greatest Detective since before puberty. The longer Nightwing chased her, the more he was certain that she thought of this as a _game_ and was toying with him.

No one toyed with Nightwing and got away with it.

Popping open one of the compartments on his gauntlet, he pulled out a set of bolas and threw it at the girl's legs.

The whipping sound behind her was Catwoman's only warning, but it was more than enough. The bolas were almost on her when she suddenly slowed and bent backward in mid-stride. The backflip was flawless, the bolas sailing right on by beneath her flexed frame. She landed in Nightwing's path, kicking out in a sweep the instant she finished.

Dropping down into a crouch, Nightwing grabbed her ankle and gave it a sharp yank.

A small squeak emerged at the unexpected yank to her foot, but when Nightwing reached for the satchel he received the nasty bite of her hidden-until-then claws ripping fine scratches through his suit and into the flesh beneath. She had also – unmistakably – hissed at him.

Rather than let her go in surprise at the harsh pain in his arm, Nightwing tightened his grip on her ankle and glowered. "Looks like you need to be declawed." His free hand darted out for the satchel again, and this time the pain was delivered to his jaw when the heel of her other foot connected with his chin. Vision flashing white as his teeth slammed together, he grunted and his grip loosened.

Catwoman delivered a second blow with her booted heel to his chest, at the same time yanking free. Immediately, she launched herself to her feet and the chase began all over again.

Hours ticked by, Catwoman staying just out of Nightwing's reach. Occasionally they clashed, but even as dawn began to approach he was no closer to catching her or to retrieving the stolen goods.

Predawn melted into true dawn and Nightwing found his stamina to be completely exhausted. Tired and beyond frustrated, he pulled out one last burst of speed to make the wide jump from one roof to another and stumbled, landing on his hands and knees. He didn't get up. Sweat dripped down his face and his legs burned from the hours of running, trembling so hard he knew if he rose to his feet now, he'd only fall right back down again. Nightwing had lost the chase.

The tickle of sharp claws lightly trailing over his scalp from crown to forehead was the only prelude to the gentle grasp of gloved fingers in his hair. She made no sound on the graveled roof even as she crouched beside him and carefully pulled his head back. A warm tongue lapped against his temple, licking up the beads of sweat that were gathering there.

"Thanks, baby. It was fun." She sounded more like they'd just had a few hours' worth of mind-blowing sex, not like they'd just been vaulting across alleys and playing a deranged game of "Mouse and Cat" for the whole night. Catwoman released him with a gentle kiss to his cheek. "Don't worry. I paid for it with my own, hard-earned money."

A single bottle of water sat sweating in front of him and glistening in the morning light. Catwoman had seemingly vanished into the last remaining shadows of the night.

Nightwing glared in the general direction of where she had been, not amused in the least by her invasion of his personal space, and grabbed the water bottle. A close examination revealed that there had been no tampering with the seal or the plastic casing, so, against his better judgment and spurned on by his fierce thirst, he opened it and took a careful sip. Cool, clean water ran down his parched throat and Nightwing gasped a breath, his chest still heaving. Waiting for his stomach to settle after that little bit of liquid, he poured some water into his palm and scrubbed it over his sticky face, then took another sip and shakily climbed to his feet, feeling like absolute crap.

He stumbled slightly on the way up and the side of his foot bumped something that gave under the contact. Looking down, Nightwing saw a large drawstring bag, about as big as the girl's satchel. He crouched down, ignoring the pain in his legs, and opened up the bag. Inside was money, jewelry, stock papers… everything that had been taken out of the safe – or, a least, he hoped it was everything.

"You've gotta be shitting me…" She really _had_ just been playing with him. That decided it. Nightwing didn't care how cute her ass was, how soft her lips were, or even how arousingly playful her tongue had been against his temple. Next time he saw her, she wasn't getting a lick of leeway for being female.

Cursing his luck with women, Nightwing rose again, this time with the bag over his shoulder, and began the slow journey back to the robbed house to return the safe's contents. Thankfully, there was an abandoned building nearby where he'd stashed a bike, meaning he wouldn't have to walk the entire way back. At least _something_ was going right tonight.

As he climbed down a fire escape to the street, he flipped open the small communicator on the armband of his right gauntlet, instantly connecting him to an old partner and friend. "Oracle, Nightwing. Oracle, you there?"

"_Here, Nightwing. Go ahead._"

"We've got a serious problem. Guess who I ended up chasing around all of 'Haven tonight? And I mean _all_ of 'Haven." Nightwing reached the bottom of the fire escape and jumped down after a careful visual sweep of the alley.

"_Mm, normally, I'd play along, but I'm just… not in the mood tonight. Just tell me._"

"Catwoman."

----- Clock Tower, HQ of Oracle, Gotham -----

"Here." Dick handed Barbara a mug full of steaming coffee, one for himself in his other hand, and leaned back against the nearest spot on the wall that wasn't covered with computer monitors as he took a long pull of his drink. His entire body ached for him to go home and sleep after that veritable marathon, yet he ignored the demands with practiced ease. Absently, Dick rubbed at a spot on his face where the adhesive from his mask insisted on lingering; the mask itself sat with his gauntlets on a rare bare spot on Oracle's console. "So, what do you think?"

"Could be a damn good copy-cat. Could be Selina, but you said yourself already that it wasn't. Could be Selina's killer, too. There aren't enough facts and I haven't got enough evidence to start researching." Barbara gazed into her mug of coffee as she spoke, and pushed her glasses up the bridge of her nose when she looked up from it and into his eyes. "What do _you_ think? You dealt with her."

"Honestly? I have no idea what to think." Dick sighed. "She's fast, she has crazy amounts of stamina, and she's a skilled acrobat. That's all I know. She was either playing with me or testing me, or maybe even testing herself. That's something we can't know without asking her." Frowning, he took another long pull of his coffee. "We can't tell Bruce about this."

"What do you mean we can't tell Bruce? He should know there's someone out there impersonating _her_." Babs looked a little shocked.

Brilliant blue eyes filled with sadness gazed at her. "Do you have any idea how much that would hurt him, Babs? Bruce loved Selina, I mean really loved her. And you saw him at the funeral. Losing her cut him deeper than I think he'll admit even to himself, and finding out there's a new Catwoman wearing Selina's suit will just rip open those wounds again. No." Dick shook his head. "We can't tell him about this, so long as she stays out of Gotham. This is something we're going to have to take care of on our own."

"Try to take care of on our own, you mean." Sighing, Oracle turned to her computers and pulled up a few police issue programs for suspect sketching and detailing. "Alright. Give me a run down and we'll see what we can do. Height? Approximate weight? Build? Skin tone? Well… you know the drill."

Allowing himself a small smirk, Nightwing padded over to stand behind her chair and began to rattle off data.

----------

The sound of Barbara closing the hidden door to her Oracle room woke Dick hours later. Grunting as his stiff muscles protested, he sat up and folded his arms on the back of her couch, watching her roll towards him with tired eyes. "Any luck?" he asked as he ran a hand through his mussed hair, voice thick from his long, exhausted sleep. At least he'd had the sense to follow Barbara's advice and changed out of his Nightwing costume before passing out on her couch in a borrowed pair of sweatpants, allowing him more rest than he would have gotten otherwise.

"None. I've got dozens or more potential matches, but without more information I'm stumped. We'll have to take this one step at a time." Coming to a stop beside the couch, Barbara let out a soft sigh. "So, you get to patrol for her, and I'll keep trying to narrow the search. Though I won't be able to actually start that until I have a little more to go on. How are you feeling?"

"More human than I was this morning, that's for sure. I called the station, told them I have a nasty twenty-four hour bug, so I have the day off. What time is it, anyway?" He looked around for a clock.

"Five PM. I bet you're hungry. Want me to order in?" One slender hand found its way into wavy dark hair, smoothing it back from his forehead before caressing the side of Dick's face. There was a momentary loneliness in her eyes, but it was only a brief flash, easily overlooked or explained away by the lighting of the room, it was gone so quickly. That hand returned to her lap and she waited with a patient expression for him to decide whether he would stay or go.

Dick smiled at her and lay back down on the couch, folding an arm behind his head as a makeshift pillow. Lean muscles honed by a lifetime of acrobatic training flowed smoothly beneath the bare skin of his torso. "Yeah, sure. Whatever you're in the mood for. After we eat, we can run through those potentials and hopefully I can narrow it down a little." Noticing the slight bags under Barbara's green eyes, his smile melted away into a concerned thinning of his lips. "Please tell me that you managed to get some sleep in and that you haven't been awake this whole time."

Barbara's smile was warm and bright. "I catnapped here and there like I always do. I'll sleep tonight. For now, I'm famished and so are you. Chinese or pizza?"

"Pizza, large, with everything on it." Getting up, Dick went over to the armchair that had his costume dumped onto and rummaged around in it until he found his wallet, pulling out a ten. He looked at the bill for a moment, then changed his mind and put it back in favor of a twenty. "Make that two large pizzas with everything on it. I'm going to call Tim and ask him to come over."

"You got it, Grayson." Taking the money, Barbara wheeled her way to the end table where the phone sat and dialed the all too familiar number of the nearest Pizza Shack.

----------

"Let me get this straight," said Tim around a mouthful of pizza an hour later, seated on the couch next to Dick with Barbara sitting across the coffee table from them. "A new Catwoman wearing Selina's costume showed up in Blüdhaven last night, ran Dick into the ground, gave back the stuff she stole, and then took off?"

Swallowing the last large bite of his third slice, Dick nodded. "Pretty much."

Tim hummed thoughtfully. "And you're sure she's not Selina? She wouldn't be the first to come back from the dead."

Dick shook his head, getting up to refill his glass of water at the kitchen sink. "Her attitude was different, and what I could see of her face looked nothing like Selina. For one, her skin was much too dark. For two, do you really think Selina would have given back stock certificates, bonds, and jewelry?"

"Good point," conceded Tim.

"Tim, we're going to want to try and keep this one to ourselves for now. At least until she hits Gotham. _If_ she even hits Gotham. We're not sure what's going on here and we… just don't want to see Bruce hurt again. He's been dealt enough pain in his life." Barbara finished off the crust of her second piece and reached for a third before continuing. "We wanted your input and to give you a heads up. Three observers cover more ground."

"Yeah. Do you think she's gonna hit Gotham, Dick?" the youngest Bat-kid asked as Dick reclaimed his spot on the couch, a full glass in hand.

"I have no idea. If she does, no matter what we do, Bruce will find out," Dick said around a sigh, reaching for another piece of pizza.

"I kind of hope she does." Tim shrugged as two sets of questioning eyes landed on him. "Selina was good for Bruce, wasn't she? Even if they were more off than on and had a ton of problems, she still made him happier than he would have been without her. If this new Catwoman is anything like Selina, it might happen again."

"Tim, you know Bruce." Oracle shook her head a little and gave the Boy Wonder a small, sad smile. "The chances of that happening are so slim… he'll probably just be angry."

Dick shrugged and shook his head once. "You never know, Babs. But for now, let's keep Bruce from finding out for as long as possible."

"At least until we can present him with more information than we have now," she agreed. Wiping her lips and hands on her napkin, the former Batgirl gave the situation a final moment's thought before asking, "So, can I count on you two to scout for me?"

She got twin, virtually simultaneous nods as an answer. "I'll keep an eye on Blüdhaven. Tim, you–"

"Watch Gotham and try to be the first one she meets if she does show up. Got it." Tim glanced at his watch and stood up. "I'd better head home. The Penguin's expecting a huge shipment tonight and we need to go over what we know before we go bust some heads. Did you find out anything new about it, Babs?"

"No. Just a couple dozen potentials, but nothing concrete and nothing based on more than the scantiest facts. I'll keep at it, but every ounce of information you two can give me will help. I'll be listening, Tim."

"Alright. I'll see you guys later. Let me know if either of you find out anything else about Catwoman. Stay safe." Tim snagged another piece of pizza and left.

"I'd better head home in case she shows up again tonight. Unless you can think of anything else we need to talk about?" asked Dick, hands on his knees in preparation to stand.

"Not that I can think of at the moment, Dick." For a moment, green eyes studied him and then she gave him a happy smile. "It was good to see you."

A lopsided smile lifted one corner of Dick's mouth and he got up, strode the two steps to Barbara's wheelchair, and leaned down to kiss her cheek. "It was good to see you, too. Thanks for letting me crash on your couch."

"Any time, Grayson. You know that." Pale cheeks flushed a little with pleasure at the warmth lingering on her cheek. Dick had a way of doing that to her and Barbara never tired of it. "Now get out there and see if you can't catch the cat, Charmer."

"Hopefully without getting scratched." Ducking her swipe at his poor joke, Dick grinned and scooped up the pieces of his costume.

**Next in Chapter Two: **An old friend from the 31st Century returns to Keystone, and Arsenal gets a taste of the new Cat in town.


	2. Chapter 2

**The Eye of Anubis**

By Nightmare and Winged Dreamer

**Author's Notes: **Uhm… We're sorry for completely messing up our Legion of Super-Heroes references? Between the two of us, we only have approximately the first fifteen issues of the Post-Zero Hour LoSH, which is the Legion we're using here, and the Teen Titans/Legion cross that led to the 3Boot. Please don't kill us for completely mucking up Jenni's Legion.

For those of you who read chapter one a long time ago (sorry for not updating for a year and a half! We've been rewriting and re-rewriting the outline), chapter one has been reposted with a few minor grammar edits – and one major edit: the length of time for which Selina's been dead has been changed from just over a year to two years.

Also, please go back to chapter one to see the new Author's Notes there for character ages and an explanation of where this story falls in the grand DCU timeline. Thank you for being so patient with us!

**Chapter Two**

----- Keystone City, Kansas. Home of the Flashes ----

A predawn glow lit Keystone Park, setting the trees on fire with color and adding warmth to the cool late summer morning air. All was quiet in the park, the occasional creak of a swing pushed by an errant breeze dampened by the peaceful aura surrounding everything. Only the birds and squirrels were awake, their daily song slowly building as the sun began to lift over the horizon.

Suddenly, branches were yanked and leaves were rustled as if by a furious storm, breaking the serenity of the morning. Songbirds shrilled in alarm as they were shaken from their perches into the air and squirrels chattered their disapproval, dashing to find safe hiding places beneath the more sturdy bushes. The storm – a blur of scarlet and yellow trailing false lightning – stuck to the paths, its wake pulling at the surrounding vegetation.

"I still can't believe you lost Barry," laughed Bart Allen, known to the world as Kid Flash, as he ran beside his cousin Wally West, the Flash, the Scarlet Speedster himself. Bright golden eyes surrounded by a yellow mask shone with mirth below wind-tousled auburn locks. "I mean, come on. How hard is it to lose a four-year-old in your house, even if he is _your_ kid?"

"Not very hard at all when your four-year-old is a little Speedster in the making. Trust me. Those little adorable monsters are more than even I can handle. It takes a mother, I tell you," Wally informed him solemnly, but there was humor in his voice and a smirk on his lips. "Kick it up a notch?"

"That depends. Think you can keep up, old man?" Grinning, Kid Flash drew on the Speed Force and rocketed forward ahead of his cousin, simultaneously releasing his hold on the dampening effects of his powers, allowing them to reduce his wake to little more than a stiff breeze like they normally did. When he was running below the speed of sound, he liked to actually see a real wake follow him as proof that he had been there, but there was no point to destroying things with the tug of supersonic winds or sonic booms when there was no need to.

Out of nowhere, something barreled into Bart's side at near lightspeed, shoving him off the path to tumble uncontrollably through bushes and knock over at least one young tree. Almost a quarter mile from the site of impact, Bart and his attacker finally slid to a stop. Groaning, Kid Flash rolled onto his back and blinked dust from his eyes. "The hell?!" he coughed.

"Bart!" exclaimed a very female voice in a very excited squeal from within the settling dust clouds, and then he was pounced again, at normal speed, with strong, slender arms hugging him around the neck. "It's been so long! It'sso goodtosee you!!Howhaveyoubeen?Igotyourletters,andthankyousomuch!Icherishthemlikeyouwouldn'tbelieve!!"

"Jenni?!" Bart would know that voice _anywhere_, and he managed to push his attacker off just long enough for his surprised gold eyes to meet their twin pair set in a dusky face and framed by dark lashes. There was only one person he knew with eyes exactly like his own and she was Jenni Ognats, the daughter of his father's sister. Shock gave way to excitement and he caught her in a crushing hug. "Ohmygod!!Whatareyoudoinghere?! Whendidyougethere?! Lookatyou!! Ohmygod!! WALLY!!Wally,get overhere!!It'sJENNI!!"

Jenni crushed him back, giggling.

The Scarlet Speedster stepped toward the tumble of Speedster pups and shook his head. He'd caught up with them just as they'd stopped. Wally hadn't been surprised to see Jenni at all if the smirk on his face was any indication.

"Hi,Wally! Longtimenosee. How'sLinda?" Once in hyperspeed it was hard to slow down and at least with these two, Jenni didn't even have to try. Containing her exuberance was not something she wanted to have to worry about at the moment.

"Hey. Linda'sgood. Thetwinsareholyterrors,butthat'sparenthoodforyou. Howareyou?"

"Greatnow!!" Tightening her hold on Bart some more, XS buried her face into the side of his neck and purred. "I'vemissedyou…"

"I'vemissedyoutoo,cuz." Grinning, Bart winked at Wally and blew a loud raspberry on Jenni's neck.

Wally laughed outright when Jenni squealed in surprise, pulled back and slapped Bart right across the face. He had earned the blow – Bart could be downright evil sometimes, and the twins strangely loved it when he did that – but she hadn't hit him terribly hard. The one time Bart had gotten him with that move, Wally had decked him. He had pulled the punch, but decked him nonetheless.

"KOKO!! Don'tdothat!!"

Kid Flash just laughed and, for the first time ever, didn't protest the "hated" nickname, instead hugging Jenni again. "Whendidyougethere?! Jeez,Ihaven'tseenyouin_years_!! Howhaveyoubeen?!"

"Great!I'vebeengreat! Youlookamazing!Wow,you'vegottensobig,babycousin! Lookatyou!" Jenni pulled back again to more closely examine Bart. "Ijustgothere!Well,probablyalittlebitago. Ranintoatreeand… gotknockedout. I'm lucky that's all I got…"

"Youran _into_ a tree? What happened tomakingphasing through stuff automatic?" Laughing, Bart grabbed Jenni's head and tried to peer into her head through her ear. "Didn't shakeanymorebraincells loose, did you?"

"Hey!! Nolice,Koko!" Jenni scolded with a laugh as she twisted away. Looking suddenly sheepish, Jenni decided to give them as truthful an explanation as she possibly could. "Actually… I was kind of panicking. I was running errands for the Legion when everything suddenly went white, and then BAM! I hit a tree while trying to slow down."

"Ouch, that's never fun," Wally interjected with a sympathetic wince. The other two Speedsters were starting to slow down, coming down from the high of seeing each other for the first time in way too long. It was good to see such a large portion of his family, and that was made obvious by his huge grin and shining green eyes.

Excitement giving way to worry, Bart sat up properly on the remains of the grass they had skidded into and fixed Jenni with a concerned look. "Everything went white? You mean your vision or your surroundings?"

"My surroundings. I was… so scared. I panicked. It happened so fast, I thought for a second that I had let myself go too far and ended up… in…"

"The Speed Force," Wally supplied as he brought himself to kneel beside the Legionnaire they called family. Jenni's costume was dirty, but Wally didn't hesitate to hug her. "But you're okay, right?"

"I don't feel any different. It just scared me."

"Well, you're here now, and that means everything's going to be alright." Bart hugged Jenni tight from the other side. "All we need to do is hop on the Cosmic Treadmill and take you back to the 31st century to make sure nothing bad happened there. Hopefully this was just an accident and not somebody trying to get you out of the way."

"Yeah… Rokk must be worried. At least _some_ time has had to have passed there, and I was supposed to be right back."

"So we'll take you back to right after when you left. You remember what time you left, right?" asked Bart.

"Sometime after nine in the morning. So showing up after ten would probably be best. To avoid overlap."

"Good plan. Let's head over to the museum then." Wally got to his feet slowly and offered both youngsters a hand up. "I'm sure Bart would like to see Melani while we're there, and I won't mind saying hello."

At the mention of visiting his mother, Kid Flash was instantly ready to take off like a shot, virtually vibrating in place. "Then what are we waiting for? Let's go, while the museum's still closed!" Air whooshed to fill in the empty spot he had left behind, rustling trees marking his path into Keystone's downtown.

------ The Flash Museum ------

Arms folded across her chest, the Speedster known as XS watched in nervous silence as her two cousins went over the Cosmic Treadmill, checking it for damage or flaws. An invention of the grandfather of XS and Kid Flash, Barry Allen the second Flash, it was designed to take a runner to any point in time of their choosing… provided they could get up enough speed. With three Speedsters running on the thing, Jenni would be surprised if they couldn't.

"Almost done," Wally informed her with a reassuring wink and a grin. Jenni gave him a small nod and a weak smile in return. She couldn't help but hope she would get to go home, even if she knew it was a very slim possibility.

"Okay," she murmured. "I'm ready whenever you two are."

Looking at the Treadmill's panel, Kid Flash rattled off the date, time, and destination they had programmed into the machine. "That sound right, Jenni?"

"Perfect." Her heart fluttering and her stomach knotting a little in nervousness, Jenni nodded after responding almost too quickly. "Just… how much longer?"

"We're ready. Let's go," Wally answered and motioned Jenni up over to the Treadmill as he stepped up beside it. "Bart will get her going and then you'll have to hop on up and join him. Can you do that?"

"Of course."

Nodding, the Scarlet Speedster turned to Kid Flash. "Have at it."

Energy soon crackled around the Cosmic Treadmill, building a small lightning storm around the two Speedsters. A sudden yet expected force grabbed Kid Flash and he had a brief moment of vertigo as the museum vanished. Seconds later, the world reformed around him to reveal the control room of the Legion of Super-Heroes' training simulator. Bart saw Leviathan in the VR chamber and, grinning, he dove for the controls, turning the simulation off.

"Hey!" His protest echoing over the speakers, Leviathan yanked his headset off and spun towards the control room. "Who turned the– Bart?!" Eyes widened in surprise, and then he was running out of the VR chamber, his headset forgotten on the floor, to catch Kid Flash in an embrace. "How have you been? What are you doing here?"

Bart eagerly hugged the taller young man back and let him go, grinning. "Hey, Gim! Just here to bring XS home. Jenni… is gone?" The rest of his body followed his head to turn towards the Treadmill. "She was behind me just a second ago."

"So that's where she got off to! That's a relief… but if she's not with you… Heh, never mind. I bet _I_ know where she bolted off to. C'mon. Cosmic Boy's this way." Leviathan took a moment to set his VR headset back in its case and, with a wave of his arm and a small grin, set off for the Legion HQ control room.

"Let me guess. She still hasn't gotten over her crush on Rokk," said Bart with a large grin.

"Gotten over? Yeesh, Bart. She didn't tell you? They've been together for a while now." Pushing open the door to the control room, Gim immediately sought Cos. "Hey, Rokk, guess who… Where's Jenni?"

Cosmic Boy, the leader of the Legion, immediately straightened from his lean over Brainiac Five and turned around at the sound of Jenni's name. "What do you mean, where's Jenni?" Anxious blue eyes landed on Kid Flash and immediately filled with questions. "Bart? What are you doing here?"

Brainy turned around in his computer chair and softly groaned at the sight of Bart. "That explains the energy anomaly in the training simulator room," he muttered.

Ignoring Brainy's attitude for once, Bart's brows drew together in confusion. "Hey, guys. Jenni didn't come this way?"

Hope and relief swept over Cos' face. "Jenni's here?"

"She should be. She was on the Treadmill with me when the time jump happened."

"I'm not picking up XS' flight ring signature on the scanner," announced Brainy, flipping through channels on the main computer in search of her signal.

Now Kid Flash was really confused. "That's weird. I could have sworn she made the time jump with me."

"Bart," Garth greeted the Speedster as he entered the room. He sighed, casting the frazzled Cosmic Boy a small, sympathetic smirk. If Imra had been the one missing, Lightning Lad didn't doubt for a second that he'd be just as much of a wreck as their leader was at that very moment.

Leviathan shook his head. "Did you maybe knock her off by mistake? You have to run pretty close together, don't you?"

Bart cast Gim a flat look. "She was running behind me. There's no way I could have knocked her off."

"Brainy, keep searching in case Jenni is here," ordered Cos, automatically falling back into leader mode as a possible solution came to mind. "Kid Flash, go back to the Treadmill and go back to the 21st century to make sure she didn't accidentally get left behind. Garth, stay with Brainy. Move." All it took was a half-formed thought for Rokk's magnetic powers to grab the iron in Bart's blood to make him turn around and push him towards the training room.

----- Back in the 21st Century -----

Slowly, XS picked herself up off the ground and stared at the place that Bart and the Treadmill had just been occupying. "I… I don't understand… Why…"

Wally had no idea what had just happened. Everything had appeared to be going smoothly. The jump had been clean as far as he could tell, but finding Jenni sitting on the floor where the Treadmill had been definitely should not have happened, not when she had been running on it as it disappeared. "I don't know. Come here." Taking her arm, he pulled her towards him. "Don't want Bart coming back on top of you. You were running as fast as him, weren't you?"

"I-I think so. I wasn't having any trouble keeping up. I… Why didn't it work, Wally?!" Jenni felt the tears flow even more freely. "What if I can't ever go back?!"

Strong arms wrapped around her in a tight embrace. "It'll be okay. It'll be okay, Jenni, I promise," the Flash murmured, stroking her hair. Fast as lightning, his mind ran through all the possible reasons for why she hadn't jumped with the Treadmill, each reason less likely than the last and none of them a real possibility. "We'll take care of you."

"I know you will, I just… I miss him, Wally. It feels like I've been away forever." Sniffling a little, Jenni hugged her cousin back tight. Wally and Bart were the best cousins anyone could ever hope for. They took good care of their own and loved their family members whole-heartedly. Not for the first time, Jenni felt an intense and tight swelling of pride in her chest. Being a member of this superhero family was amazing and wonderful… but she wanted Rokk and the rest of the Legion. _They_ were her most familiar family. Not that she didn't love Wally and Bart and their respective, immediate families. She just missed her own. "Sorry… I sort of lost it there for a second."

"I would have been worried if you hadn't." Flash managed a small smile for XS and loosened his embrace. "Bart should–"

The air around them shifted and crackled as the Cosmic Treadmill reappeared in a quick burst of light. Bart didn't even wait for the spots to stop dancing in his cousins' eyes before jumping off the Treadmill towards them. "Jenni! What happened? Why didn't you make the jump?"

"I don't know. I just… didn't go. Everything started to go white and then I was dropped on my butt. You disappeared and here I still am." A soft sniffle and Jenni pulled away from Wally to move in a little closer to Kid Flash. "Is… everyone okay? Did they even know I was missing?"

"Cos is going nuts. You didn't tell me you guys are together now!"

"Yeah… We've been together for a while. I had other things on my mind so it didn't come up in the last hour." She flashed him a small, truly apologetic smile and said, "Let's try again." Already moving toward the Treadmill, Jenni found herself nothing but eager to see Rokk's bright blue eyes again. She was so close and, as the saying went, so very far away.

Wally was right behind her. "I'll give a little extra umph. Maybe it was a matter of power somehow. This thing's tricky sometimes."

Nodding, Jenni climbed up and launched into a full out run. Seconds later, Wally hopped up behind her and the last thing she heard were Bart's boots hitting the tread before everything started to go white. She ended up on her rear on the ground again, blinking spots out of her eyes and totally alone.

----- Back in the 31st Century -----

Wally blinked away the spots as rapidly as he could and looked about him. There was only one person waiting for them in the room they ended up in. He was a hopeful looking young man with heroic good looks, messy black hair and blue eyes that dimmed as his expression turned from hopeful to crestfallen. "You must be Rokk," Wally greeted him, then looked to Bart. "And Jenni didn't make it here this time either."

"Dammit! God frickin'…" Muttering a string of blistering curses, Kid Flash kicked the Treadmill. "She was right behind me! She was!"

Any other time, Cosmic Boy would have been elated to be in the presence of a Justice League member. Right now, he just wanted his girlfriend back and to know why she had disappeared in the first place. "Do you have any idea why this is happening?"

"I wish." Bart kicked the Treadmill again. "She was running right behind me! She should have jumped with us!"

"I don't have a clue." Shaking his head, Wally sighed and folded his arms as he gave the Cosmic Treadmill a calculating once over. "Bart, stop kicking it. I'd like to be able to make it home." He paused for a moment before continuing, answering Cosmic Boy's question to the best of his ability. "The only thing I can think of is that something is forcing her to stay in the past. What, I haven't a clue, but that's all I've got. The Treadmill's science is… unique and only the second Flash really knew much about it. Unfortunately, he didn't impart the knowledge before he went. Or at least, if he ever did I never understood it enough to remember it."

"And we can forget about asking Grandma Iris. I bet even _she_ doesn't know." Frowning, Bart pulled his leg back to kick the machine again and put it back down at the Flash's warning look.

"Maybe if I get Brainy, he can figure out what's going wrong," suggested Rokk. "We need XS to come home. She was carrying documents that our sponsor needs as soon as possible."

"We'll get you the documents one way or another, kid. Don't worry about that. I'd be more worried about the thing keeping XS from making it back. Whatever it was that sent her to the 21st century in the first place might have needed to get her out of the way or something." Pacing around the Treadmill, Wally stopped exactly opposite of his original position and looked to Bart. "Let's give this thing one last shot. Third time's usually the charm."

"If it doesn't work this time, I'm letting Brainy play with this stupid thing until it _does_ work," muttered Bart, hopping up onto the Cosmic Treadmill with the Flash. "Unreliable hunk of junk."

Rokk backed away from the Treadmill and watched as the Speedsters ran themselves into another time jump, hoping. Before the spots had disappeared from his eyes, they reappeared in the same crackling storm of energy.

Without Jenni.

That was it. Frustrated and worried, Cosmic Boy turned for the door to get Brainiac and make the twelfth-level intelligence figure out why XS couldn't come home. Kid Flash's heated swearing followed him out of the room.

An hour and four more failed tries later, even Brainy's nerves were frayed. "There's nothing wrong with it," he declared, tapping a frustrated tattoo on his data pad with the stylus as he glared at the Treadmill. "Nothing. The only thing that can be stopping XS from coming through is that someone or something is blocking her passage, and I can't find any interference in this time."

"But what or who in the 21st century would want to keep Jenni there?" Cosmic Boy turned to Flash, hoping he might have an answer.

Wally tipped his head back and stared at the ceiling as a list of so many possibilities drifting through his head. He dismissed almost all of them as they came into his head as most of those people were no longer threats or didn't even know that Jenni existed. "It could be someone from your time that's made it back to our time… or… Max or Johnny if they know something we don't. Although that's not very likely, I've learned that nothing is impossible in this world."

"Max or Johnny?"

"Max Mercury or Johnny Quick. Two Speedster's from his time." Bart jerked a thumb in Wally's direction to answer Brainy's question. "They're part of the Speed Force now, so it is possible that they could be messing with things. Why they would do that, though, I have no idea."

Sighing, Rokk ran a hand through his hair. "Is there any possible way to contact them?"

"Technically they're dead, but technically they're not. It's complicated. Look. Bart can run those papers we brought with us to your sponsor if he hasn't already. I'm not sure what else we can do…" Ignoring the urge to rub the back of his neck in helplessness, Wally shrugged one shoulder and shook his head. "We'll probably just have to wait this one out."

"I ran 'em to Brande when you were going over the Treadmill's schematics with Brainy." Kid Flash crossed his arms and glared at the offending piece of technology. "This bite- Wait a second. I'll be right back." He took off running.

"I don't want to know," said Brainiac Five, heading for the door. "Whenever he gets ideas, it always means a headache for me."

"Go see if you can detect anything strange from the control room," Cos called after him. Frowning, he turned back to the Treadmill. "I don't understand this at all. What could be keeping Jenni in the 21st century?"

"I honestly don't have a clue." Curious about where Bart ran off to, but unwilling to go traipsing about in a time not his own, Wally cast a few quick glances to the place Bart had been before focusing solely on Rokk. He looked far more than worried. It wasn't really his frowning face or the set of his shoulders that told Wally how much the situation was getting to Cosmic Boy so much as his eyes. "How long has Jenni been gone here?"

"Almost five hours. She left a little after nine this morning to make the run and was supposed to have come right back. Fifteen, twenty minutes at most. Thirty if Brande got talking. But when she still hadn't come back after an hour and Brande called to ask where the documents were, we knew something was wrong. According to Brainy, her signal just up and vanished while she was running to Tokyopolis not even two minutes after she had left." Cos' tone was tight with worry.

"Hey." Wally lowered his voice and reached out, putting a gentle hand on Cos' shoulder. "Easy, buddy. Jenni's just fine. She's a little upset and missing you, but she's fine otherwise. Everything's gonna be okay."

"Okay, as far as Mom knows, Grandpa Thawne doesn't have any stupid plans involving Jenni, so that idea's out. She says hi, by the way. What's wrong with you, Cos?"

Willing his heart to slow back down to a normal pace, Rokk just shook his head and decided to not tell Kid Flash that he had almost had the iron reflexively yanked out of his body by Rokk's magnetic powers. He hadn't realized he had been wound so tightly. "Nothing."

Bart shrugged and looked to the Flash. "So. Now what?"

"We go home and take a look around the 21st century. See if we can flush whatever might be holding her up in our time." Turning to Cosmic Boy, Wally asked, "So, are you free for the next two or three minutes?"

----- Back in the 21st Century Again -----

Things were beginning to look utterly hopeless. Jenni turned back to where the Treadmill had been sitting only a minute before and almost instantly found herself blinded by the sixth reappearance of the Cosmic Treadmill. Spots danced before her eyes, blinding her almost entirely. Blinking rapidly, Jenni forgot all about eye discomforts when strong arms suddenly hugged her tightly to a warm body. Enveloped in a wonderfully familiar scent, XS felt tears brim in her eyes and hugged him back. "Oh, Rokk…"

His nose buried in Jenni's sleek hair, Rokk tightened his embrace, relieved to see that at first glace Jenni appeared to be perfectly fine.

Feeling a tap on his shoulder, Bart looked up at Wally and nodded at the Flash's gesture towards the other side of the large room. They could wait to take Rokk back home for at least a few minutes.

A couple long minutes later, Rokk loosened his embrace just enough to lean back and meet his girlfriend's beautiful golden gaze. "Grife, Jenni, I was so worried about you. Are you okay?" he murmured, brushing a few errant strands of dark hair from her forehead. A small frown creased his forehead as he noticed something odd. "Is… your hair longer?"

"I'm fine, Rokk," Jenni murmured and reached up to cradle his hand in both of hers, holding the backs of his fingers to her cheek with a watery smile. "We need to talk. C'mon."

Lacing their fingers together, Jenni lead Rokk over to Wally and Bart who met them a little over half way. Flashing them a sheepish smile, she cleared her throat, glanced at her boyfriend and then asked of her two cousins, "Do you think I could borrow enough money to get a hotel room for a while? Rokk and I need to talk…" She knew she wouldn't even have to say "in private."

Wally blurred for a split second. His image stabilized with the addition of a wallet in his left hand and the offering of three twenties in the other. "It's enough for the rest of the day. Go to the Sweet Dreams Motel on Lawrence Avenue. It's got the best rates. I don't have to remind you that he can't stay for too long."

The money left Wally's hand with a gentle tug and Jenni leaned closer to plant a thankful peck on her elder cousin's cheek. "Thank you."

"Any time, sweetie. And don't worry, guys. We'll find some way to get you home, Jenni. Right, Bart?"

"Right," said Kid Flash with a resolute nod.

Rokk smiled at them both. "Thank you for all your help."

"It's nothing. We'll see you in a bit." Grabbing Bart by the elbow, Wally turned and the two Flashes vanished, leaving Jenni and Rokk alone.

----- Home of Jay Garrick, the first Flash -----

Joan set the last plate of food on the kitchen table and headed for the fridge to being pouring drinks. "Bart, could you please go tell Jenni that dinner's ready?" she called into the living room.

"Sure." Setting his book down, Bart hopped up from the couch and dashed up the stairs to his room, where his cousin had holed herself up after they had sent Rokk back to the 31st century. The farewell had been tearful, resigned, and clearly painful to both Jenni and Rokk, and not even Bart had argued with Wally's suggestion to let Jenni cry herself out in private. He knocked on the door and called, "Jenni?" Getting no response, Bart poked his head into the room and spotted her curled up on his bed, right where he had left her a few hours ago. "Jenni? Dinner's ready. You hungry?"

"No. Thank you, Bart," came the mumbled answer. Hunched up and curled in on herself as much as she could be, Jenni stared at the wall she faced as if it would give her the answers to all of the questions of the universe.

"You sure? Joan made macaroni casserole," he sing-songed, sitting on the edge of the bed. "It's really good. And there's chocolate cake for dessert."

"Maybe… later." Closing her eyes, the young woman just lay still. Her heart hurt and it was obvious since Jenni almost always wore her heart on her sleeve. Fresh tears made new tracks down her already moist cheeks, and she bit her lower lip to keep it from trembling.

Bart scooted closer and leaned over her. "Chocolate cake with ice cream."

A minute shake of her head showed her lack of interest holding strong, but she did reach out and catch his hand, needing the contact of another person. The loneliness she was feeling wasn't totally uncalled for, but she wasn't _truly_ alone. She did have Bart and the rest of the 21st century Flash family, but the Legion and Cosmic Boy… they had been her everything for a very long time. She didn't even have her dad here.

Wanting some reaction other than silence or a miserable mumble, Bart squeezed her hand as he bent over her ear and murmured, "So… did you two screw?"

The blow he received to cheek was a swat with the back of the hand she hadn't grabbed his with. "What do _you_ think, Bart?!" she snapped and pulled away. "I'll probably never see him again!"

A snap was better than a mumble, even if his cheek did sting now. "You don't know that. Wally and I might be able to get you home tomorrow, and then you'll be with everyone again." Bart lay down behind her and hugged Jenni close. "Come on, Jen. Come down to dinner? Please? I know you're hungry."

A low whine escaping her throat, Jenni rolled over and buried her face in his neck, sobbing. She had no one to blame but herself for the loss of one life. Now she had to lead another. It was just hard to decide how when her heart felt so tight and her body so heavy with the sadness of losing her close friends and on top of that her lover. At least, she consoled herself yet again, she had Bart whom she had been missing on and off since his trip to the 31st century to deal with the Fatal Five-Hundred.

Strong, slender arms held Jenni tight and Bart patiently waited for her to stop while he held back tears of his own, wishing there was more he could do than simply be there for her. No matter how happy he was to see her again for the first time in years, it wasn't fair that she was forced to be separated from everything she knew. At least last time she'd ended up stuck here, they had known why she had shown up in the 21st century and had been able to send her home after they fixed the Cosmic Treadmill. This time, they might not even have that option.

As her current crying bout subsided, Jenni let out a shuddery sigh and burrowed closer to her baby cousin. He was bigger than she was now, but that was helping her feel better somehow, so she wasn't about to complain. "I'm sorry. I… just don't feel up to going downstairs."

"Okay. Do you want me to bring up a plate?"

"A piece of cake… maybe, and some milk." Jenni slowly lifted her head until she could look him in the eyes and asked, "I'm not putting you out, am I?"

"No," he said with a shake of his head. Putting on an encouraging smile for Jenni, Bart kissed her forehead and slowly let her go. "I'll go get you that cake. Want me to leave you alone or want me to eat up here with you?"

"If you wanted to." Sniffling, Jenni sat up and looked around for a box of tissues, hoping she would find one within her vicinity. She didn't much feel like moving.

The box she was looking for tapped her on the head.

Taking it with a small smirk, she pulled out a tissue and blew her nose first, then dabbed at her eyes with a clean edge of the soft white paper while murmuring, "Thank you." Bart was really very thoughtful and perceptive sometimes. It was a wonder… "Why don't you have a girlfriend yet?"

Crossing his arms, Bart lifted a brow. "Why are you assuming I don't have a girlfriend? You haven't seen me in what, four years? Well, four for me. How old are you now, anyway?" he asked curiously.

"Twenty-eight. And I'm just guessing because you don't act like you have one. Maybe it's just me, or maybe it's just that I've been overexposed to Ultra Boy, but guys act… different sometimes when they've got a girl." Blowing her nose again, Jenni balled up the yucky tissue in one hand and threw it into the trash can by the desk not far away. "_Do_ you have a girlfriend?"

"Twenty-eight? Jeez, you're a _geezer_ now." The tissue box sailed through the place where Bart's head had been a second ago and he darted out of the room with a laugh.

Bart had managed to dodge more than the box of tissues, but Jenni let it go. She really wasn't in the mood to pry either. Some chocolate cake and milk, maybe a few good nights of a sleep and maybe she'd be ready to start her new life, but right now, all she could bring herself to feel like doing was mourn for her old life. Lying down again, she curled up and closed her eyes with a sniffle.

-----------

"She hasn't come down in two days, Wally. Bart's the only one she's been honestly talking to, and even that hasn't been very much." Sighing, Jay idly wiped some of the condensation off the glass of juice between his hands. The afternoon sunlight streamed bright and clear through the kitchen window, but not even the beautiful day outside could lift the mood inside the room. "Have you been able to figure out anything at all? Why she's stuck here? Why she's even here?"

"Nothing's even remotely amiss. I was hoping that maybe by now we'd know why she was here, but so far nothing's come up. It's even been quiet for the regular crooks and bad guys," the Flash grumbled and downed his second glass of orange juice. "I'm not sure what to think."

"Then I guess it's time I adjusted and moved on, isn't it?" The soft voice was quiet and a little resigned, but there was still humor there lying just beneath the surface. Feeling more like herself, XS stepped closer to the dining table. "Lunch smells good. What was it?"

"Grilled chicken sandwiches. Go ahead and make yourself one." Jay nodded towards the pan on the stove holding still-warm strips of seasoned chicken. "How are you feeling, Jenni?" he carefully asked, doubting he would get an actual answer.

"Don't worry, kiddo. Sit down. I'll take care of the sandwiches. How many?"

"You don't have to, Wally." Jenni paused, but Wally motioned her to a chair and Jenni caved. "Three to start, please. I'm… a little hungry, but otherwise I'm feeling a bit better. Thank you, Jay." The sandwiches appeared before her on a plate and she dug into the meal with a ravenous appetite after a mumbled thank you.

"A little hungry, huh?" Smirking softly, Jay got up and soon set a glass of juice in front of Jenni. "It's good to see you out of Bart's room."

"Thank you." Taking a sip of juice to wash down her first sandwich, Jenni tucked into her second, eating a little more slowly than she had with the first. "I'm sorry," she murmured between bites. "For burdening you."

"Burdening?! You're not a burden, Jenni!" Wally almost looked offended by the comment.

Jay opened his mouth to say the same, only to be cut off by the front door opening and slamming shut.

"I'm home! Anybody here?" An auburn head poked into the kitchen, immediately followed by the rest of Bart's body and a wide grin. "Jenni! Hey! Good to see you finally came out into the light. I was afraid you were going to turn into a vampire on me or something," he teased, giving her shoulders a squeeze in lieu of a hug. "Is that Joan's chicken?"

"Yeah. These are mine. Make your own," Jenni wrapped her arms around her plate and mock-glared at Bart, then stuck her tongue out at him. "Where were you?"

Wally flashed Jay a small grin. Their girl was looking and apparently feeling better for real. That was one less worry for the Flashes to endure.

"Pestering Tim and Conner when I wasn't telling them that you're here. They want to drop by and say hi later, if you don't mind." Bart snagged a small piece of chicken that was threatening to fall out of Jenni's sandwich and darted away towards the counter when Jenni swiped at him. Razzing her, he began to put together a sandwich of his own.

"Who are Tim and Conner?" Finishing off the last of her third sandwich, Jenni drank her juice. The two older Flashes were sitting quietly, just watching their "charges" with something that seemed to be a nostalgic form of pride. It made Jenni feel… a little more at home.

"You know. Conner. Kon-El. Superboy. Tim is, well, Tim. Robin. You know, the Boy Wonder. Well, he's not a boy, but at twenty he's not a teen either so Teen Wonder doesn't work anymore, and Man Wonder just sounds weird, so he went back to Boy Wonder." A monstrosity of bread, chicken, and almost every possible sandwich topping to be found in the fridge and pantry, the sandwich on Bart's plate wobbled as he sat down and set it on the table, only to vanish in the span of a heartbeat.

"Taste that did you?" Jenni teased and shook her head with the beginnings of one of her brighter smiles. "I didn't know Superboy had an Earth name, too. He never mentioned it while he was with us. Boy Wonder? …Grife! That's Robin's real name? It's so mundane! I would have never guessed! Mm. What time did they want to come over?"

Letting out a forlorn sigh, Jay headed for the living room. "I'll go hide all the couch pillows."

"Hey! We only busted the pillows once! And Conner started it!"

"Exactly."

Bart rolled his eyes and decided it wasn't worth it. "Whenever you want them to come over, unless something's come up with them between when I left and now."

"Alright," Jenni murmured and added a thoughtful hum. "You can give them a call after I talk to Wally and Jay. Jay? Can you come back in here for a minute please?"

Raising one red brow, Wally tipped his head slightly to the side and asked, "What's up, Jen?"

Jay came back and reclaimed his chair at the table. "Yes, Jenni?"

Looking between the two older men in the room, Jenni felt a little guilty. She was already a guest in Jay's home, already a burden, but in order to end her drain on their lives – the Flash families had never been rich – she had to ask them for one more thing. "I… know this is asking for a lot, and I'm grateful for everything you guys have already done for me. I can't thank you all enough, but… I… I don't think I can stay here. In Keystone. I think… I need a break, so I gave it some serious thought, and I was wondering if I could get a loan so that I could get an apartment in Metropolis."

Surprise showed clearly on the Flash's face. Wally hadn't been expecting _this_. Questions about how she might learn to live in the 21st century while she was stuck here were actually what he'd been anticipating. Not a request for money or the statement that she didn't want to be a hero for now or… a desire to move away. "Are you sure that's what you _really_ want? I mean, this is all so sudden. I don't think you should make any rash decisions."

Understanding the guilt he could clearly see in the young Speedster's gold eyes, Jay reached across the table to clasp Jenni's hand. "Jenni, if you're afraid of being a burden, don't be. You're family, and we _will_ take care of you, no matter what. But if it'll make you more comfortable with staying here, we can help you look for a job somewhere here in Keystone or even in Central City. I can talk to the other directors at the lab; maybe get you a position as a lab assistant."

"Linda might be able to get you a job working with her, too. We're in pretty good standing with the community, so you could probably get a job just about anywhere you like, but we'll have to get you some personal ID and stuff first." Wally's smile was warm. "And Jay's absolutely right. You're family. Hell, we even took _Bart_ in didn't we?"

"Though that could be considered more an act of charity than familial ties," said Jay with a small chuckle.

The dark cloud that had developed over Bart's head at Jenni's request to leave immediately dissipated as he turned an annoyed stare on his caretaker. "Love you too, Jay." Returning his attention to his cousin, Bart grabbed her other hand. "Stay? Please, Jenni? You're not going to leave me alone with these two old geezers, are you? And you haven't even met Wally's spawn yet! Who's gonna help be baby-sit them?"

Carefully extracting her hand from Jay's, Jenni pulled Bart over into a hug, wrapping her arms around his neck and holding on tight. "What I'm trying to say is I'm going inactive. As of this moment, XS is retired. That can't last long if I stay here in Keystone. You all know it won't last longer than a year at best if I stay and if I'm lucky. If I'm going to be living here in this century, I'm going to have to adapt. I'm going to have to have a job and a place of my own. Jay, you and Joan are amazing for taking in my baby cousin. I won't ask you to take care of two of us. We'd eat you out of house and home. Besides, having three Speedsters under one roof could prove disastrous. I love you all, but I can't stay here. Please don't make this harder. I'll be around a lot; I promise. Metropolis isn't that far away."

Green eyes slid over to meet wizened blue. Jenni sounded pretty much decided, but he wasn't certain what the best course was for her. Jay had a lot of years on him. "I defer to you, old man. What do you think?"

Sighing softly, Jay shook his head once. "Jenni, are you absolutely sure about this? The Metropolis in this time is very different from the Metropolis you know."

"Yeah. Couldn't you at least stay here until you're used to the way things are here?" Bart asked hopefully.

"How about a compromise? Bart can come and live with me for a few weeks in Metropolis. He can help me find an apartment, a job and get settled while showing me the ropes." There had to be some way to convince them that she couldn't stay in Keystone. Staying in Keystone meant being a superhero and that's not what she needed to be doing right now.

Wally let out a soft sigh of his own. "I don't think we're going to change her mind, guys. Compromise?"

Bart shrugged and tightened his arms around Jenni. "It's better than letting her jump into living by herself in a time she's not familiar with."

"You're going to need identification and personal records, Jenni," said Jay. "Wally, can you take care of that?"

"Absolutely. I'll go get started on it right now, but my source is going to need information. An address, that sort of stuff."

"Then I guess we'd better get started. Bart, do you want to call Kon-El and Tim? I want Superman and Superboy's permission to live in their city even if I am going to be inactive." Jenni pulled out of the embrace and kissed Bart's forehead.

"Sure thing." Bart disappeared from the kitchen.

Jay leaned forward over the table and crossed his arms. "While he's doing that… Jenni, what do you know about living in an apartment?"

----- Metropolis, Five Days Later -----

"Why can't I just fly this up to Jenni's window again?"

Tim rolled his eyes and shifted his grip on his end of the couch he and his boyfriend were carrying up the stairs, carefully maneuvering it around a turn in the stairwell. Just two more flights and they would be on Jenni's floor. "For the last time, because we don't want people to know that Jenni is friends with Superboy, especially if she seriously does plan on going inactive."

"I suppose," Kon grumbled and took a little more of the couch's weight with his telekinesis. Just because they had to look like they were carrying the couch up the stairs together didn't mean Tim actually _had_ to be carrying it. Satisfied that he was now carrying almost the entire weight of the couch, Kon lifted his gaze to meet the beautiful baby blues just above him. "I was almost hoping she'd join the Titans when I found out she was here. Jenni was always a lot of fun and the Tower could always use the extra pep. She's good at making other people feel better, y'know?" They were almost there. Just a few more steps and through the door and they'd be on Jenni's floor.

"I know. But right now, the most important thing is to get her settled in and adjusted. Honestly, I think she made a good choice by going inactive. It'll give her more time to figure out exactly how she's going to deal with being stuck a thousand years in her past for an indefinite amount of time. Joining the Titans would only distract her from adjusting, and in the end wouldn't help her very much." Reaching their desired floor, Tim reached behind him for the doorknob and pushed the stairwell door open with his back. "Kon, give me a little more of the weight. It'll be hard to explain if the couch looks like it's floating."

"Say when," sighed the meta and slowly let some of the couch's weight sink into Tim's hands. They were almost finished moving Jenni into her new apartment, and Kon was getting restless and hungry.

"Good." Muscles honed by years of intensive martial arts training easily took the added weight, and Tim walked backwards through the hall at a calculated pace to keep them from tripping or dropping the couch. "You're pouting," he told Kon with a smirk.

"Who's pouting?" Bart poked his head out of the open apartment door and spotted his best friends. "Why is Conner pouting?"

"I am _not_," Superboy grumbled and gave Bart a brief, glancing glare before returning his attention to Tim. "What makes you think I'm pouting?"

"What else am I supposed to call it when you get hungry and impatient?"

"I don't pout," Kon grumbled again, having no real answer to that question, and carefully followed Tim through the door. "Jen! Where do you want this thing?"

Turning around in the kitchen where she and Cassie were putting together Jenni's bookshelf and dresser, the former Legionnaire gestured over to the middle of what was to be the living room portion of the studio flat. "Somewhere over there is fine for now, thanks."

Tim led Kon into the middle of the living area and set his end of the couch down, then headed over to the kitchen. "You girls need any help?"

"No, thank you, Tim. I've got it. Bart got everything else together about two seconds ago, so there's just these two and then the furniture that needs to be assembled is taken care of," answered Cassie, the Titans' resident member of the Wonder Family.

"What's left downstairs?" Jenni asked with a nod confirming Cassie's statement. Her eyes tracked briefly past Tim's shoulder, and a smile bloomed on her face before she brought her eyes back to Tim's.

"Just a bunch of boxes full of Bart's junk–"

"It's not junk!"

"– and the boxes of your things. Kon, stop staring at my ass."

"I wasn't," the Super mildly protested, but there was a smirk playing about the corners of his mouth that said otherwise. The laughter from the others told him they didn't believe him, but they could all see that he didn't care much what they thought of it when he went right back to doing just that.

"Alright. Awesome. How about you and I head down and start bring up our stuff, Bart? Tim and Conner can help Cassie with the rest of the furniture. You and I can unpack after everything's in place." Catching Bart's wrist, Jenni began pulling him toward the door

Bart grinned. "Race you downstairs." Shaking free of Jenni's grip, he just remembered to take off at a human pace instead of superspeed.

Shaking his head in amusement, Tim sat down in the spot Jenni had vacated and grabbed a screwdriver to finish putting the tracks on the inside of the dresser.

Kon watched Jenni take off after her cousin and shook his head before rising and moving over to join his friends in the kitchenette. "Anything I can do?"

"These two pieces are the last ones, right?" asked Tim of Cassie, gesturing to the dresser and bookshelf.

"Yep," Cassie agreed, twisting a screw into place with a few easy twists of her wrist.

"Then you can either relax or go help the speed twins bring up their stuff, Kon. I've got this. There's only one more track left."

"How about I order a few pizzas?" His stomach growled in enthusiastic agreement. "I bet Bart and Jenni are getting hungry, too."

Cassie stood and righted the bookshelf, testing its balance with a few pushes to each corner as she walked around it. "Me, too. We've been at this for a while."

Tim nodded in agreement. "Pizza sounds good to me. I'll pay. Make sure to add two pizzas to the usual number for Jenni."

"I heard pizza," announced Bart as he walked in, holding a precarious tower of four moving boxes. "Are we ordering pizza? I'm hungry."

"Me, too," Jenni echoed and set her two boxes down out of the way in a corner by the door. "That's everything. We can start laying out the rugs and stuff, get the furniture organized, and by the time we're done with all of that the pizza should be here. Right?"

"You got it." Kon winked at the female Speedster as he picked up the Yellow Pages and pulled out his cell phone.

"Great. I'll make my bed then and, if you don't mind, Bart, could you go put the towels and other linens away in the linen closet in the bathroom?"

"Got it." A quick spin of his arm at superspeed closed the front door and Bart proceeded to zip around the apartment, putting things away. A Gamestation appeared under the TV, along with a slew of games and movies. The couch opened to reveal a bed, which was covered in sheets and folded back up in a couple heartbeats. Cabinets in the kitchen opened and closed as they were stocked with non-perishables. Sounds were heard from within the bathroom for a barely two seconds, and then Bart re-solidified from his blur to state, "Done."

"Thank you." On her way by, Jenni brushed an affectionate kiss to her cousin's cheek, then continued on her way over to the dresser that Tim had just finished, carrying a laundry basket of clothes on one hip. It wouldn't matter if she filled the dresser now or later, since she had Conner and Cassie to carry it to where it needed to go. "You could hang my clothes up in the closet, too, if you wanted."

Finished ordering eight large pizzas, a few two liter bottles of pop and three bags of breadsticks, Kon turned back to his friends and looked around. "What's gotta be moved?"

Smiling, Jenni straightened and turned. She'd be settled into her new home in no time.

----------

Drying his hands on his jeans and straightening his shirt as he came out of the bathroom, Tim spotted Jenni at the door saying good-bye to Cassie. The sight of Bart shifting impatiently in the hallway behind Wonder Girl made him smile. It didn't take a protégé of the World's Greatest Detective to figure out that Bart wanted some alone time with his not-so-secret crush.

Tim heard the sink in the bathroom turn off just as Jenni shut the front door and he approached the Speedster. "Hey, Jenni, could we talk to you for a second?"

Her face showed only open welcome as she gestured to her new couch. "Sure. Have a seat."

Kon emerged from the bathroom, running still damp fingers through his hair. He followed them to the couch and settled in one corner while Jenni took the other, forcing Tim into the middle. The second the Boy Wonder took his seat, a strong arm looped around his waist and pulled him against a solid as steel body. "How much does a place like this run?"

An understanding light clicked on in bright gold eyes and the Speedster smiled. "About eight-hundred a month. That doesn't include all utilities though. It also depends on the layout you choose."

In a mostly subconscious response to the arm holding him, Tim leaned against his boyfriend and lover. "When you spoke to the landlord, did they mention any other free apartments? I don't remember seeing this building in the classifieds."

"He walked Bart and I through two other floor plans and mentioned that there were two of one of them left and only one of the other."

"Awesome." Kon looked down at the back of Tim's head and wondered aloud, "Do you think we should set up an appointment?"

"It certainly couldn't hurt. We can go to the office on our way out."

Amused by the almost hidden enthusiasm in Conner's voice and expression, Jenni leaned back in the couch and smirked, "So, when's the wedding?"

Kon chuckled and glanced down again. "Yeah, Tim. When are you going to propose to me?" The fingers that had been resting peacefully against Tim's side drummed twice right over a ticklish spot.

"When your warped mind finally matures past sixteen." Tim grabbed the hand on his waist and narrowed his eyes at Kon in playful warning. "Anyway. Thanks, Jenni."

Giggling at Superboy's stricken expression, Jenni shook her head. "Any time, Tim. Let me know if there's anything else I can do to help."

"Tell Bart to stop dragging his feet and just ask Cassie out already. We've been trying to talk him into it and he keeps saying he will soon but it never happens."

Smiling fading a little, Jenni looked to the front door. "I don't understand why he's afraid to ask."

"I've been wondering about that myself. I think it might be because he's afraid of losing her friendship over it. That's the only reason I can think of." Conner followed Jenni's gaze to the door and shook his head.

"He didn't exactly get a lot of relationship advice from the VR world he lived in for the first eighteen relative years of his life. And then he was all out of whack with his physical age and mentality and everything. Maybe I _should_ talk to him about it."

"Hopefully you'll have better luck than we have. Personally, I think he's afraid of Wonder Woman, especially after she threw a certain someone," Tim glanced at Kon, "off the Tower roof just for kissing Cassie."

Conner flashed Tim a sheepish grin and Jenni felt her good humor coming back. "Really, it could be any of those things. I'll talk to him tonight when he comes back and see if he'll tell me what's holding him up."

"Good. It's starting to drive me bonkers with the way he fawns over her when she's not looking. I don't even know if Cassie knows he likes her and I know better than to ask." Kon shook his head. "We should get going, Rob."

"Yeah." Unwrapping Kon's arm from his waist, Tim stood. "Congrats again on finding a good place so fast, Jenni. If you ever need help for anything, don't be afraid to give any of us a call, okay?"

"Thanks, Tim." Standing as well, Jenni hugged Tim first and then Conner as Superboy got to his feet. "Thanks for helping out today, too."

"Anytime. We'll see you soon, Jenni."

----- Chicago, A Few Nights Later -----

"Sorry," Arsenal muttered at a sleepy pigeon glaring at him from a good twenty feet away as he yanked his crossbow bolt free of the concrete case of the water tower at the top of the Marina City building. Another sharp yank on the bolt's rope released the metal stake from a building across the street and he quickly reeled in the rope around his hand. Tucking the whole thing back into his quiver, he stared out over Chicago and wondered what he was doing out here when Roy Harper could have been asleep in his hotel room with his daughter Lian curled up next to him. But of course, Roy had felt restless as always once Lian was asleep and decided to go out into the night.

That restlessness had not warranted two hours of absolutely nothing for him to take care of and sheer boredom. Pulling out a set of specialized binoculars, Arsenal decided that if he didn't find anything to do on this sweep, he was going back to the hotel.

One thorough sweep of the glittering cityscape and Arsenal was immediately glad that he had chosen the top of the Marina City building as a vantage point over Chicago. Just a handful of streets away, there was something odd about one of the Field Museum's skylights. Finally, something interesting for him to do.

Not ten minutes later, Arsenal was flat on his stomach on the museum's peaked roof, his side pressed against the roof's decorative edging to hide as much of his body in shadow as possible. His gaze and gun were firmly trained on the single open skylight not twenty feet away. Someone had gone inside that way to avoid alarms, and if they didn't want security chasing after them on their escape, this was the way they would be coming out. Roy grinned. The poor sap wasn't going to know what hit them.

Ten more minutes ticked by before anything happened. The first thing Roy saw was a single gloved hand catching the edge of the skylight. Immediately followed by its mate, it gave the impression that whoever was coming out had jumped up to catch the skylight's sill. The rest of the intruder followed only a second later, a cat-eared cowl preceding the shapely, black-leather clad woman out the window as she rose from the darkened void between roof and linoleum. Once solidly on the roof, she turned and carefully shut the skylight once more, double-checking it as if she were a security guard before straightening again. Looking satisfied with herself, the moderately buxom, curvaceous young woman turned to leave.

Roy watched in utter fascination as the woman cat-strutted away, her hips swinging for balance on the sloped roof, his eyes glued to her leather-clad ass. God, and did she have a _nice_ ass, accompanied by beautiful hips and legs that seemed to go on forever. She moved with an almost hypnotizing feline gra…

Feline! Catwoman!

Climbing silently to his feet, Arsenal crept up behind Catwoman and pressed the barrel of his gun to the middle of her back. "Looks like cats really do have nine lives. I heard you were dead."

Supple, soft looking black leather pulled tight over slender shoulders as the woman stiffened for a split second. She relaxed almost as quickly and reached above her head slowly. At first it seemed as if she were putting her hands up, but instead it turned into a back-popping stretch. When she answered, her voice was a velvety purr. "That wasn't me."

Never having actually dealt with Catwoman before, Roy had no basis on which to test the truth of her claim. All he knew about her, he had learned in passing from Nightwing. For now, it was enough. Besides, he was much more interested in the alluring way her leather one-piece flowed with her beautiful body than if she was the real Catwoman. "Really? Your costume says different. What were you doing in the museum?"

"Browsing. I like to window shop, but I don't like crowds. I prefer… more intimate settings." Without much warning, the woman dove gracefully forward, did a quick flip and then spun, walking slowly back up to Arsenal, completely unheeding of the pistol still pointing her way. It was all over before Roy had really had time to react, but surprisingly, she didn't flee. "Hello, Arsenal," Catwoman murmured and her glossy black lips curved in an alluring smile. "It's a pleasure."

Oh boy. Roy felt his Adam's apple bob as he swallowed, and he adjusted the grip on his gun to get himself back on track. Now was not the time to give in to the pure sexuality practically flowing from the woman in front of him, no matter how much he was tempted. And oh, was he tempted. "It will be a pleasure only if your 'window shopping' was for items in the gift shop and you plan to come back tomorrow to actually purchase them."

"Oh, don't worry, hero. I prefer to look. I didn't take anything." One corner of those voluptuous lips turned up and her voice seemed to drop just a little lower. "Frisk me and see for yourself if you think I'm lying."

That was a trap. That was so very much a trap, and there was no way in hell Roy was going to fall for it, because he knew if he frisked her, he would trigger an electrocution mechanism or release a potentially poisonous gas or chemical or who knew what else. He didn't care if the leather hugged her body like a second skin. If there was anything Arsenal had learned during the few times he had worked with Batman, it was that even skin-tight costumes could hide deadly secrets. Raising his gun a little higher, he gave her a cautiously distrusting look.

"I'd turn out my pockets except that I don't have any." A simple shrug and she folded her arms. "If you're satisfied… I've got places to go."

"That depends. Where is your 'shopping spree' going to take you?"

"Maybe the diner down the street, maybe the nearest hotel for a catnap. I haven't decided yet. I'm just out enjoying the sights tonight. How about you? What brings you out in the middle of a quiet Chicago night? Since we're being conversational and all."

"Business." A lie. Lian had begged him for weeks to go on this trip after seeing a movie that took place in Chicago until he had finally given in, but Catwoman didn't need to know that.

She looked him up and down then stepped forward, moving closer with that same smile on her lips while completely ignoring the gun in his hand. "You sure it wasn't something more along the lines of… pleasure?"

Arsenal could feel his resolve crumbling in the face of her smile. "And if it was? What would it matter to you?"

"That was a bit sharp. I thought we were being conversational." Catwoman was standing in his personal space now, his arm holding the pistol out past her shoulder. A step and a half more and there wouldn't be anything but clothing between them.

A cool breeze off Lake Michigan blew towards them, sweeping the alluring scents of well-oiled leather and female musk right into Arsenal's nose. He felt his resolve crumble a little more. "You said you aren't Catwoman. Who are you then?"

"No. I said that wasn't me. She was my predecessor. I _am_ Catwoman, but I'm not _that_ Catwoman. I'm my own Catwoman, if you will." She let out a soft, amused laugh and took a half step closer. "Isn't your arm tired yet?" Turning around, the new feline femme fatale put her back to him and sighted down his arm and the gun barrel, backing up until there was only a scant few inches between their bodies to do so. It was almost painfully obviously that she was delighting in teasing him.

Quick as he could, Arsenal shoved the gun back into its holster before the sight of Catwoman's supple back got the better of him. "S-So she really is dead."

"Yeah." There was more sadness in her voice now and a lot less of the playfulness though her tone never lost its purr. "I was there."

"Oh. Uhm…" Roy didn't have a clue as to how to respond to that. Instinctually reacting to the sadness in her voice and the odd relaxed state her body language advertised, he murmured, "I'm… sorry."

Now she turned, pivoting to face him once more. Her smile was softer as she offered a quiet, "Thank you." And then she was stepping back one measured step at a time. "It was nice to meet you, Arsenal. Tell Dick I say hello the next time you see him and that I really did have a good time. He made an excellent examiner."

Alarm bells immediately went off in Roy's head at the mention of Nightwing's name, and in that instant he was focused again on his job. "Uh, sure… Who's Dick?" he asked, playing dumb in hopes of getting more information. Either the Outsiders or the Bat Clan had a breach somewhere in their security, or Dick had been stupid and slept with another woman he _shouldn't_ have.

"That would be telling." With a playful wink she began a graceful series of three back flips, each of which brought her that much closer to the edge of the roof.

Muttering a curse, Arsenal took off after her, only to watch in fascinated horror as Catwoman threw herself from the museum's two-and-a-half storey roof. There no other buildings for her to land on and Roy didn't see how she would–

She unwound a whip from around her waist while in mid-flight, lashed the end of it onto the flagpole, and threw herself another two-hundred feet away to land in a somersault on the museum's lawn, barely missing the road. She was off and running before Roy could even think to go after her, and by then it was much too late.

Roy sat down hard on the roof's edge and pulled a communicator out of his belt. "Nightwing, this is Arsenal. Nightwing, you there?"

"_This is Nightwing, Arsenal. What's up?_"

"I think Gotham's leaking… or something."

"_What do you mean, Gotham's leaking?_"

"The cat lady's crazy. Fucking gorgeous, but absolutely off her rocker. She said to say 'hi' by the way, _Dick_." Roy's voice was both amused and taunting and no little bit condescending. "Said to tell you she had a 'great time' and that you 'made the perfect examiner.' … So. Did you get her number?"

Silence reigned on the other end of the communicator for all of five seconds. "_The hell?_" came the flat remark, followed by a, "_I heard you the first time!_" when Roy began to repeat himself. "_**Examiner**__?! I was just an __**examiner**__?! And how the hell does she know my name?!_"

"I don't know. Pillow talk maybe?" Oh this was good… It was so fun to rub Nightwing the wrong way sometimes.

"_I didn't sleep with her!_"

"…You know what? For once I actually believe you on that." Sobering up a little, Roy looked up into the night sky. "I'd say you guys have a problem."

"_No shit! You think?!_" A loud sigh rattled over the communicator's speaker. "_Dammit… If she knows my name, then what else does she know? Examiner… Jesus, she really was just testing herself. But for __**what**__?_"

"I couldn't even begin to tell you, Wingman." Roy got to his feet and dusted the seat of his pants off. "But I've got a lovable little girl waiting for me back at the hotel. I just thought I'd let you know about this. I'm in Chicago by the way. … Do you think Batman has her number?"

"_No, because Batman doesn't even know she's around, and if you tell him, Roy, I will __**hurt**__ you. What was she doing in Chicago?_"

"She called it browsing. Window shopping. She didn't take anything… that I could tell anyway. I'm standing on the roof of a museum. A two story museum that she just launched herself off without a care in the world. Looked like a female version of you only hotter."

"_Thank you for the left-handed compliment,_" Nightwing grumbled. "_So you let her get away?_"

"And you didn't?"

The only answer Roy got was an unintelligible mumble. "_Anyway, thanks for letting me know. I'll call Oracle and get searching for a possible leak._"

"Any time, bro. Have a good one."

"_Yeah, sure. Hug Lian for me._" The line went dead.

----- Blüdhaven -----

Sighing, Nightwing stared at his communicator for a long minute, contemplating the mess he had just found himself in. And he knew it was going to get worse before it got better. Resigned, he turned his communicator onto a familiar channel. "Oracle? Nightwing. We have a problem."

**Next in Chapter Three:** No secret is safe from the Batman, not even one kept by his kids.


End file.
